A two-week-old foal was beaten to death by a mob of young louts and its body set alight, an Irish charity says.

The Galway SPCA says it wants to catch those behind the attack, which was reportedly witnessed by other children.

The attack took place on waste land in Castlepark, Galway City, last weekend.

It is believed the foal’s mother was also injured in the incident and was removed by someone from the scene.

A spokeswoman for the charity, Margaret O’Sullivan, told the Sunday World: “We believe the foal was attacked by youths with sticks and stones. The poor animal was just a few weeks old. It’s horrific to think that anybody would do something like this.”

The body of the foal was apparently taken from the scene before Galway SPCA officials could recover it. They believe it may have been dumped in nearby woods and are appealing for locals to come forward if they find the remains.

O’Sullivan continued: “We will continue to investigate this matter and we will make a report to gardai [police], this is too serious to ignore.”